Death Meets Life

“Mother, why do they fear us?” Thos asked, watching dejectedly as the fawn scampered away. All he had wanted was to pet it, but its eyes had widened in fright and it had run as fast as its unsteady legs would carry it back in the direction of its family.

“We are the Bringers of Death, little one,” she answered serenely, long pale fingers running through the unruly length of his hair.

Thos pouted, “But Mother, I thought you said the world can’t continue without Death. I thought our work allowed the animals to not go hungry and the plants to grow back healthy.”

His mother nodded, looking down into the endless depths of eyes the same color of polished onyx she had sculpted him from.

“That is so, dearest, but nevertheless Death is a painful thing for most to handle. The loss of one’s own life is unpleasant. The loss of a loved one is nigh unbearable.”

Her voice turned somber and Thos’s mood reflected it. He thought of his father and brother and tried to imagine what he might feel if they were no longer with him. But the young immortal’s mind was unable to grasp the concept, knowing they would remain untouched by their own calling.

“We have done enough for today. Let’s go see what your father brought for me to prepare tonight.”

His mother picked him up, despite his grumbling that he could handle the trip on his own. Secretly, he still enjoyed the times she carried him. Her skin was cool, her hair soft as silk. She smelled like the rich earth they lived beneath, and he breathed her in as she moved gracefully through the sharp rocks and rotting trees that led to their home.

Soon, he was asleep.

**********************************************************************

Years later, Thos was old enough to venture out to work on his own. It had only been a century, but he was now as tall as his father. He didn’t have the same hard lines around his eyes, though, or the cold surety of his father’s movements. Nevertheless, he would don his robe and wander in the domain he had been given to watch until he had proven himself worthy enough to watch over all as the rest of his family did.

He came across a small rabbit that had managed to outrun a predator but had impaled itself on a sharp root jutting out from the ground. It wriggled and writhed in pain until Thos laid his hand over its head.

“Sleep the eternal sleep, dream the eternal dream. May your soul be at peace.”

The rabbit jerked once and closed its eyes for good. Thos was always glad when he was able to use his calling to relieve suffering. He’d become used to the way he and his family were feared by creatures sentient enough to understand who they were, but he made it a point to show mercy where he could.

He continued to walk through the forest, removing wilting leaves from plants so that the rest would flourish, and watching the light filter through the trees. The golden spots the sun created on the ground reminded him of the gold that weaved itself along the walls of their home, the veins of metal that wound in and around the rock and soil.

Thos stopped suddenly at the sound of a voice. The fairies and ogres all made sure to keep far from him, though they too were immortal and therefore not in his domain. He’d heard rumors his family was made out to be vicious and violent. It had bothered him when he was small, but he’d become accustomed to the solitude as the years had passed.

Sliding into the shadow of a tree that was large enough to be older than him, Thos tilted his head as he caught sight of someone in a clear patch of forest. Trees encircled the clearing and he saw a fellow immortal who seemed to be around his age sitting in the tall grass surrounded by flowers. Everything around her seemed especially alive. Birds sang, and insects buzzed. Flowers blossomed to their fullest, flaunting themselves for the one in their midst.

She must be a Bringer of Life.

Her dark hair hung in wild waves, flowers braided into it here and there. It shimmered with deep purples and blues in the sunlight, reminding him of the Heavens. It struck him as odd, as the stars and planets were in his family’s domain - the Death of a star was rather spectacular, in fact. Then again, he recalled the old stories his mother had told him of the Heavens being the beginning of all Life. So perhaps it made sense.

He’d never seen one of their kind before. He burned with curiosity and tried to sneak closer, sticking to the shadows in order to blend in.

His presence did not go undetected by the living creatures, however, and his appearance brought an abrupt halt to their singing and chirping. The sudden silence on his side of the clearing announced his hiding place as clearly as a loud noise would have.

She looked up, and he inhaled sharply. Her eyes were silver and they shone with an ethereal light like the stars themselves. He was now sure the old stories about Life and the Heavens were true.

Her skin was pale, like his, but her cheeks had a rosy hue, something completely foreign to him. His family’s skin was like marble, stony and pale.

“Hello?” she asked. Her voice was soft and calming, like the waters of a small brook.

Her eyes fixed on his position, but she could not see the being inside the shadow. Instead of growing fearful, she seemed intrigued by this.

“You don’t have to hide. I won’t hurt you,” she said. He snorted. As if she could hurt him. Still, he refused to reveal himself. He didn’t want to scare her away when she saw what he was. He wanted to observe her more, never having heard more than the basic stories told by his parents about the Bringers of Life.

She stared hard for a few minutes, her luminous gaze looking directly at the ancient tree he stood by. For a moment he worried that she might actually see through his shadow, but after a while she went back to what she had been doing. He watched her sit on the ground, staring at her hands. He could see her lips move, could feel magic working in the air, but couldn’t hear what she was saying. The tall grass obscured what was happening and he found himself getting uncharacteristically frustrated.

His family was patient. The ancient gods would not be happy should the Bringers of Death be too eager. Part of his training had been knowing when to act and when to wait. But at this moment, for some reason, he found himself unwilling to wait until she was gone to see what she was doing.

**********

As she focused her hands on the ground, attempting to grow a flower from a seed, a deep voice sounded from just behind her like a clap of thunder.

“What are you doing?”

She whirled around, eyes wide with shock as she stared at the source of such a voice. He was tall and pale, draped in a black robe. His hair and eyes were also a deep black, the kind of black only known in an enclosed space entirely devoid of light.

This was a Bringer of Death!

“I’m trying to bring a flower to life,” she said quietly. She wasn’t afraid exactly, though she’d heard tales from some of the fairies of the vicious Bringers of Death. She didn’t feel any ill intent coming from him, just curiosity in his gaze.

“Why?”

“Because I like flowers,” she said, looking up into his eyes. He stared back without speaking and she wilted a bit, knowing he could sense that she wasn’t being entirely honest.

“My younger sister can grow a full flower from a seed. I can make them blossom once they are budded, but I’ve never been able to do what she can. Father is so proud. I… I wanted him to be proud of me, too.”

She whispered her confession so quietly that a slight breeze would have carried it away from his ears. Perhaps that was what she had hoped would happen.

“Maybe it’s not the flower’s Time,” he said. She bit her lip and could feel her cheeks heating in shame. A Bringer of Death would know all about the proper Timing of things and would also be aware that she should know.

“It’s not. I just wanted to be able to do it once, so that I could show him I could.”

Thos looked at her, noticing her face had become redder.

“Why do you look like that?” he asked, head tilted in curiosity.

“What?” she replied, confused by the question. His finger touched her cheek and she jolted at the sensation. It was like ice.

“Your face. It changed color.”

“Oh. Well, it’s - it’s because I’m embarrassed,” she replied.

“I see,” he said, nodding once in satisfaction. He turned his attention to the ground.

“Where is your seed?” he asked. She fished in the dirt, pulling out the seed she’d been so desperately trying to grow. Not even a hint of a stalk was sticking out from it. Her eyes grew disheartened.

“Stay,” he commanded, before disappearing into the forest.

Normally she might be offended by the demand, but her curiosity won the moment. She stared after him and perked up when he returned a few minutes later, grasping something in both hands.

He kneeled on the ground across from her and she saw a collection of leaves, bark, and a few berries in his hands. He placed them on the ground where she had been trying to grow the seed now clutched in her hand and began to whisper.

The magic felt heavy around her and the silence felt oppressive. She couldn’t see what was happening beneath his hands so she looked up at his face, curious to see him up close. She gasped when she noticed his eyes were now the color of freshly spilled blood. They glowed slightly, and she felt a little frightened. She sat back a bit, preparing to flee should she feel threatened, but his voice stopped her movements.

“Now try.”

Her eyebrows furrowed as she looked down but shot up in surprise when he moved his hands out of the way. Where his small pile of nature had been now sat a pile of rich soil.

Thos watched her stare for a few moments, smirking a bit. She was so expressive, very unlike anyone he knew. It was amusing. When she failed to move, he clasped a couple fingers around her wrist and moved her closed hand over the new earth.

He could feel her tense up slightly when he touched her skin but paid it no mind. He had felt her wariness when he had been working his magic, but he wouldn’t harm her. She would either come to understand that or she would flee from him, like most living creatures. The thought bothered him somewhat, but he didn’t let it show. Instead he began to open her fingers and took the seed from her hand, placing it down inside the soil.

“Try again,” he insisted for a second time.

She blinked, still somewhat dazed by the turn of events, but quickly nodded and set her hands over the seed. She stared down, focusing firmly on bringing it fully to bloom.

Now that he was closer he noted her magic felt fluid, like quicksilver. He kneeled there, watching intently as she continued to chant into the air. He had never seen Life magic worked before and was irreparably curious.

After a few minutes he saw something climbing slowly up out of the soil. The small green stalk grew, followed by another. The stalks split and suddenly pink buds formed before growing and bursting in an eruption of petals. Before long a small bunch of pink flowers stood out of the ground where he had placed her seed.

His companion was breathing heavily, but a wide smile split her face.

“That - that was amazing! I could feel the nutrients rushing to the seed. I could feel the beginning of the flower’s life! It was, it was -” she couldn’t explain how happy she was, so she laughed instead. The sound reminded Thos of the chimes the fairies hung on their sacred trees.

Now that she’d accomplished what she had hoped to, Thos wasn’t sure what she planned to do. He supposed he’d done enough and should probably leave, retreating into his usual solitude. He stood and turned to go, but felt her hand grasp his cloak.

He turned and tilted his head toward her. She stood and held out one of the small flowers toward him. He looked at it, then at her, confused.

“For you,” she said, expression still pleased. He blinked, still not understanding.

Steeling herself, she grasped his hand as he had done to her, placing the pink flower in his now upturned palm.

“It’s a sweet pea. It symbolizes gratitude.”

Thanos went still, dark eyes wide and unsure as they stared at the tiny flower dwarfed by his long, pale hand.

“Gratitude?” he finally whispered.

She nodded. “I couldn’t have grown them without you. I wanted to thank you.” She started to feel bad. The flower wasn’t exactly impressive, but it was one of her favorites which was why she had wanted to grow it in the first place. Did he not like it? Was he insulted by the meager offering?

“I’ve… never been thanked before,” he said slowly, as if chewing the concept over in his mind.

She started, surprised at first, until she remembered suddenly that he was a Bringer of Death. Understanding slowly dawned on her. His magic brought Death, something dreaded by every living being.

She thought about what had just happened, about how her magic hadn’t been strong enough, how the other living things in the vicinity had probably been drawing the needed nutrients away from the seed she’d been trying to grow. She realized that it was possible to have too much Life, a concept that left her feeling a little dizzy. Life was all she’d ever known. It was cause for celebration. It brought her joy to watch things flourish.

“What you do is necessary,” she said slowly, as if trying to comfort him while uncomfortable herself with the idea. Their purposes were opposite one another, but it seemed instead of working against one another they seemed to complement the other.

“I know,” he said knowing fully the necessity of his work, “but it is not pleasant to think about.” The necessity did not make the idea of Death comfortable to others.

“But it felt nice,” he said, looking once more at the pink flower in his hand. It reminded him of her cheeks earlier. “Your thanks.”

Her cheeks took on the hue he liked again, and he tucked the fragile gift away in one of his pockets, to place near his bed later.

Thos looked at the sky where the sun told him it was time to return.

“I must go,” he said, turning once more and leaving the clearing.

She stared after him, sitting down and playing with the petals of the freshly blossomed flower. He disappeared quickly into the shadows of the forest and a breeze broke the stillness that she’d only just remembered had settled into the clearing on his arrival. The birds and insects began their songs once again and the pleasant smell of the sweet peas drifted to her nose. She thought of the unexpected help she’d received, and a smile lifted her lips.

Perhaps Death wasn’t so frightening.